PMA 2011 Moves to CES 2012

The rumors that flew around cyber-space all day Wednesday are true – the 2011 PMA, recently renamed and re-positioned as CliQ, has been moved from its early September, 2011 dates (6-11) to Jan. 10-13 at the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas. It will run concurrently with the 2012 International CES.

Ironically, PMA had made the move to a September time slot, from their usual Q1 timeframe in large part to avoid an annual conflict with CES. The re-naming to the “CliQ Show” was done, in part, to change the show’s feel and add more workshops, how-to’s and a general consumer element.

While PMA claims exhibitor space was tracking close to recent years, the absence of several of the major manufacturers, including Canon and Nikon, was hurting 2011 show efforts. This coupled with the earthquake and tsunami in Japan that has crippled much of the imaging industry’s Q4 product manufacturing factored in in moving this agreement along.

“We are excited about the potential this agreement brings to significantly add to the CES digital imaging product offering for our buying audience,” Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of CEA, said in a statement.

“Consumer electronics (CE) technology has ushered in a rapid convergence of digital photography with home entertainment systems. Home media centers, high-definition TVs, and wireless networks will continue to accelerate this trend. The breadth and scope of digital imaging product offerings the PMA trade show is noted for will complement and further expand our extensive growth in this product category.”

“PMA colocation with CES creates a great opportunity for our combined audiences to learn from each other, grow, and take full advantage of the integration and connectivity of personal content (in the form of digital photography) and home entertainment,” PMA executive director Ted Fox said in a statement. “This convergence will expand with continued enhancements to camera phones and tablets.”